Blue Fin 4.75m CustomSteve Morgan | First Published: June 2004

IT’S BEEN a busy time for both Blue Fin Boats and Mr T’s Tinnies recently. Both companies have been growing to service the demand for Blue Fin boats and have been successful in doing so.

Representative of the faith in their work is the custom built 4.75 metre craft of Gavin Dunne’s. Readers will recognise Gavin’s name as a competitive tournament angler and customers will recognise him as a staff member of Mr T’s at Birkdale on Brisbane’s bayside.

Gav’s boat has been designed and built for a variety of purposes and to date, it’s seen the waters of the Great Barrier Reef through to Somerset Dam – and a heap in between.

Gary Howard’s previously tested the centre console version of the 4.75 Blue Fin hull in these pages (QFM March, 2001), so this report concentrates on the internal fit up of the craft and the fact that it is running maximum horsepower – a 90hp Mariner OptiMax and is constructed of 3mm plate aluminium all round.

From the bow back, this boat runs an 82lb MotorGuide Great White cable drive electric motor and has an Eagle sounder mounted on the bow. The transducer for this unit is strapped to the armature of the electric, so that the angler can see exactly what’s beneath them while under electric power.

The front casting deck is large – easily allowing two anglers to stand and cast up there for calm-water work. When the going gets rough, the helm and passenger seats are designed to fit into the for’ard hatch and allow ample fishing room for a couple of anglers in the aft. This cockpit space is deep enough to use for rough water as your knees are below the gunwhale level for most anglers. Gavin’s used this feature frequently during calm-weather trips for sharks and marlin off the Gold Coast.

Under the front casting deck is an enormous plumbed livewell – a full 1.2m long to accommodate barramundi or a full limit of bass/bream down south. A removable divider separates competitors’ catches. Also under the front deck are spacious underfloor storage hatches to keep your gear out of the way.

Twin consoles keep both the passenger and driver dry, as this boat can travel at quite a speed with the 90 strapped on the transom. The helm position is comfortable and the pair of SmartCraft gauges gives rhe driver all of the information needed at the touch or two of a button.

Along the internal transom there’s a series of hatches that conceal batteries and plumbing, yet give easy access for service or troubleshooting. I liked the fact that Gavin could carry an XOS landing net at all times, clipped to the wall in this area and within easy reach.

Above the outboard a poling tower seems like a little bit of a white elephant – this boat has such deep side decks that controlling a drift with a pole in the wind would take more skill or muscle than any of us possess.

As set up on the test day, the Custom 4.75 Blue Fin would cost you around the mid thirties, but Gavin was quick to point out that there’s a show special model being created – with two sounders, 71lb electric motor, twin 60 litre livewells, one console and a 75hp two stroke motor for under $25,000. Give Gav a call at Mr T’s Tinnies on (07) 3822 9117 for more information.

1) A 1.2 metre long livewell will keep anything from barra to bream healthy.

2) From above, you can really see the spacious foredeck and the recessed cock-pit. Different fishing situations utilise both.

3) With a custom paint job and livery, the Blue Fin turns heads on and off the water.